Genesis Global Fined £3.8m by the United Kingdom Gambling Commission

Maltese-based gambling operator Genesis Global are in hot water once again after the UKGC found the company had failed its social responsibility checks.

Genesis Global which operates 14 casino brands was suspended back in 2021 after ‘significant social responsibility and money laundering failures’ were detected by the UKGC. After 3 months and more stringent checks in place, the UKGC lifted the suspension.

Failed Social Responsibility Checks

It’s been revealed Genesis Global had failed on three separate occasions to carry out appropriate social responsibility checks on its customers. A UK nurse on a salary of £30,000 gambled £245,000 over a 3-month period, although the nurse’s salary had been checked, they failed to restrict the account.

On another occasion, a customer lost £234,000 in a six-week period, again the financial circumstances of the customer were not checked and failed to carry out ‘any meaningful responsible gambling interactions’ according to the UKGC.

During a six-month period, another customer lost £197,000 then closed the account, citing she wished to spend more time with her family.

The customer in question then went on to open another account and deposit £200.

£3.8m Fine

After the latest string of failings, the UKGC has slapped a huge £3.8m fine on the company and they must now pass regular audits in order to keep its UK gambling license.

Head of the UKGC Helen Venn said all gambling operators should take notice of this case.

The UKGC also added Genesis Global had not carried out strict anti-money laundering checks after a customer made deposits of £1.3m and lost £600,000 before carrying out affordability checks and where the money had come from.

When Genesis did check how the customer had funded their account, they were given a bank statement which showed deposits of £23,000 and payouts of £27,000, not enough to keep up that level of gambling.

Other customers were able to deposit large sums before Genesis stepped in and carried out Know Your Customer (KYC) checks. Genesis said they trusted the customers ‘word’ after they declared they earned £111,000 a year as this was an average director’s salary in London. It was later revealed the company was in fact dormant.

Genesis have been warned by the regulator they would undergo further extensive auditing to ensure this does not happen again.